


Ashes

by IseliaDragonwill



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Bad Ending, Character Death, Episode Ignis Verse 2, Fix-It of Sorts, Fuck Bahamut, M/M, Mentioned Ardyn Izunia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-10-01 23:25:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17253344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IseliaDragonwill/pseuds/IseliaDragonwill
Summary: For the IgNoct New Year's Exchange 2018!Can beauty come out of ashes?





	Ashes

**Author's Note:**

> First things first! This is for Addigni-art over on tumblr. They wanted a fic about what Noct would do after the Verse 2 bad ending. It certainly was interesting to think about and I'm not sure how much it differs from what you might think. Hopefully you end up enjoying it though! May you have a Happy New Year!
> 
> Alright now that the official business is taken care of, it was fun to come back to some ignoct after being away from writing them for a while. When I first saw the prompt, I did have a moment of panic because I wasn't sure if I would be able to come up with a decent premise, but once again, my Spotify playlist saved the day. Thanks for being a pal, Spotify. 
> 
> Very loosely inspired by the song Ashes from...yup...the Deadpool 2 soundtrack.
> 
> Comments and kudos are love <3 Very interested to hear thoughts on the ending.

Cold. 

The blood froze in Noctis’s veins, leaving him colder than the steel beams and wires that littered the ground around them, colder than the light of the Crystal that was meant to be their salvation; that very light which grew brighter with every soul it consumed, drawing forth its Chosen King like a helpless moth to flame. Kneeling in the dust and dirt, Noctis’s hand hovered above Ignis’s where it lay on the ground, afraid that the slightest touch would cause it to crumble to ashes. Despite the fissures on his body still pulsing with raw magical energy, like a ghastly spider’s web seared into his skin, Noctis could feel no warmth from him. His chest did not rise or fall with breath. His eyes did not open.

Ignis was gone. Noctis had been too late.

The shock hit him before anything else. For all his life Ignis had been at his side, confident and capable, always guiding him on the proper path–even during those times when he railed against the expectations placed upon him at birth. When they were apart, all it took was for Noctis to call and Ignis would come running, ready and ever willing to serve. 

And serve he had. To his very last breath.

Through tears and gasping sobs, he pleaded for Ignis to come back to him, just as he always had. He slammed his fists into the ground, bloodying them on sharp stones and debris, raging against the soothing light of the Crystal that shone across the precipice, against his father’s ring so wrongly worn on Ignis’s finger. Those cursed relics wrought so much death; claiming so many Noctis held dear in their name. He hated it. He hated every fate that conspired across time and space to brand him Chosen, to strip him of the ones he loved, knowing all he could do was look on, unable to save them despite Light’s endless power at his fingertips. The irony in it was cruel, cold like the ground upon which he sat. Cold like Ignis, devoid of life. 

Noctis curled around Ignis’s too-still body, hugging him close as he buried his head into the crook of his neck. The scent of ash lingered in the air and on his skin.

_‘Chosen King of Light, time grows short and the world grows weak.’_

_‘I know what I have to do, but...I’m not ready. I can’t leave him. Not like this.’_

_‘He is already gone.’_

The corners of his eyes stung as he squeezed them shut, trying to block out the divine voice of the Crystal, all the while knowing what a futile gesture it was. Gently as he could, he slipped the ring off Ignis’s finger, clutching it within his hand. All he could do now was carry on and hope that whatever came to pass, whatever change he could affect, Ignis’s death wouldn’t be in vain.

He finally stood, gathering the resolve to lift himself from the floor and approach the Crystal, his birthright. The ring–a leaden weight in his palm, heavy with the souls it held within–conspired to make each step more difficult than the last. Once his father had told him to walk tall, but Noctis could only offer a silent apology as he trudged forward with slumped shoulders, settling for even being able to walk at all.

He didn’t remember putting the ring on his finger as he faced the Crystal, but what he saw then would haunt him for the rest of his days. 

Ignis. Poor flawed, beautiful Ignis, had stolen the ring from where it lay on the wet stone of the Tidemother’s altar. He had gone into the daemon’s nest, bargained with the Lucii for their power, all in a desperate attempt to save his life. Even with their power, Ignis was no match against the Accursed, whose darkness had festered and grown for two thousand years. The Lucii had knowingly taken his devotion and twisted it into a chain that had shackled him to his own death, looking on with indifference as Ignis gambled and lost. 

Some part of Noctis was aware that he was screaming, his throat raw as he begged for the visions he saw to be untrue. But all sound died in his throat when he saw Ignis fall to the ground, gasping for breath as his borrowed power left him. Life began to fade from his eyes, their brilliant green turning dull and grey; a last, quiet plea escaping past his lips.

 _‘I don’t want to die without him…’_

Seething with fury and heartbreak, Noctis warped into the Crystal's light to demand answers.

 

_‘You mean after everything he did, I still have to die? His sacrifice meant nothing?!’_

_‘His death was unfortunate, but just as many have sacrificed all for the King, so must the King sacrifice himself for all.’_

_‘Don’t give me that! It was...it was always my burden to bear...not his. So why was he allowed to give up his life, knowing that it wouldn’t change my fate?’_

_‘It was his choice to make.’_

_‘That’s not good enough! And once I get out of here and fulfill my calling as_ you so ordained, _I’m going to make things right.’_

 

The odd thing about time was how spans of it could feel like they passed in an instant. Yet, when Noctis emerged from the Crystal’s light ten years after finding Ignis on the cold ground, he felt a weariness about him that he couldn’t seem to shake no matter how much he stretched his aching muscles and blinked away the strain in his eyes as he stared into the darkness that consumed his world. The sky was devoid of light, motes of ash suspended in the still air; the ground, desolate and empty. He felt a pang of sympathy, knowing how a simple absence could change so much, throw the balance of life itself into utter disarray. 

“Soon…” Noctis whispered a promise to all that would hear him and set off towards Insomnia.

 

His fight against the Accursed brought needed closure and an unexpected outpouring of emotion. How many years had this man suffered, waiting for a death that could only come at Noctis’s own hands? He knew, of course–two millennia he had waited–but numbers meant little when trying to capture the pain of a life that should have ended long ago, a life prolonged by the arrogance of a god who refused to accept his own wrongdoing. And so, Noctis’s entire family line had paid for his mistake. As much as he couldn’t forgive his ancestor’s manipulations and the harm he had done to the ones he loved, Noctis found it hard to truly blame him when it was the Astrals that had set this prophecy in motion in the first place. 

They met once more in the Beyond, ready to accept their respective ends. But before he dealt the final blow, Noctis turned from the Accursed, seeing both generations of kings and his friends waiting for him at his back. He ignored them for the moment, begging their patience. Calling upon the covenants forged with the Oracle’s help, he summoned forth the Astrals one last time, ocean-blue eyes piercing each one in turn before finally settling on Bahamut.

“You. I can never forgive you for what you’ve done. If not for you…” He extended a hand in the direction of the Accursed, who watched with an amused glint in his eyes, no doubt enjoying the the small dose of long-overdue retribution that Bahamut looked about to receive. “He wouldn’t have been condemned to a life in darkness. So much suffering could have been avoided. So many people would still be alive!” He paused, eyes wet with unshed tears. ”... _Ignis_ would still be alive.”

_‘You think yourself wise, but you still understand so little, Chosen King.’_

“Maybe so.” His nails dug into his palm, teeth gritted as he hissed at Bahamut. “But what I do understand is that nothing like this can ever be allowed to happen again. I won’t allow it.”

A silence fell over all as Noctis approached Ignis’s spirit, standing at the Oracle’s side. Through it all, Noctis had felt his presence with him, even during those years inside the Crystal when he gathered the power of his forefathers and reflected on his fate. As he faced his oldest friend for what might be the final time, he watched as a storm of emotions crossed his beautiful features–pride, relief, fear and questioning...just what did his King intend to do?

“Ignis?”

“Yes, Noct?”

Noctis took Ignis’s hand and held it in front of him, palm up. Within his own, a tiny tongue of flame wavered and grew brighter, emitting the most pure, white light. Ignis’s mouth fell open, his eyes searching Noctis’s face for any hint as to what was going on.

“Ignis, you gave everything for me, and they treated your sacrifice like it was nothing. You never should have had to die.” Wisps of midnight hair brushed the sides of his face as he shook his head, heavy with regret that they couldn’t have had this conversation sooner.

“I did so gladly, so that you might live, Noct.” Ignis whispered, eyes cast to the ground. It did little to hide how the green in them misted over.

“But don’t you see? They never intended to spare me.” Gently, Noctis coaxed the flame into Ignis’s palm and closed his hand around it. “This is my chance to make things right, to use this power to help the ones I love. But the choice is yours.”

Ignis’s eyes flitted back and forth, a cursory gesture far removed from any real thought on the matter. “My sentiments were then as they are now. I do not wish to live in a world without you in it, Noct.” With an imperceptible nod, he pressed his forehead to Noctis’s, cradling the back of his head with his hand. “Wherever you go, I shall be at your side.”

To hear those words was a relief, after having been separated for so long. Still, one final fear lingered. “I don’t know where I’m going after this is over, Ignis…”

“Then we shall find out together, just as we always have.” A kiss to his forehead. Their fates sealed.

Noctis smiled. “So it’s settled.” Reaching up, his hands cupped Ignis’s face, thumbs tracing lines of cheekbones as he guided Ignis down so their lips could meet. He could feel the spark ignite within Ignis’s chest, sending a shower of embers into the skies above. They stayed suspended there, glowing points of light like stars, never going dim or fading out. 

“Let’s go home Ignis.” 

And Ignis took his hand, following his King into the Light, knowing it was ever the home where he belonged. 

 

_'Hey Ignis?'_

_'Yes, Noct?'_

_'Do you really think...I’ll be able to do this? '_

_'I have every faith in you. And should you ever find yourself lost…'_

_'Heh, I know. You’ll be here.'_

_'Precisely. I wouldn’t have it any other way.'_

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [Tumblr](https://iseliadragonwill.tumblr.com) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/FallenIsel)!
> 
> I'm not as active on Tumblr anymore because of the "adult content" fiasco, but I'm on [Pillowfort](https://www.pillowfort.io/iseliadragonwill) now!


End file.
